"Reclining Nude" by Johan Dijkstra

"Reclining Nude" by Johan Dijkstra (1896-1978). From an auction.

Johan Dijkstra, one of the founders of the illustrious Groningen art society De Ploeg was an artist who made paintings, drawings, graphic art, illustrations and book designs. At the end of the thirties’ he began to concentrate on monumental art, designing, amongst other things, the stained glass windows for the auditorium of Groningen University. In addition, he wrote a great deal on art topics. His observations on art and his visual work illustrate how De Ploeg’s early expressionist style gradually made way for a more sedate approach, in which he falls back on the idiom of impressionism. In his monumental work, he initially focused on the innovative impact of the so-called Community Art at the turn of the century. Dijkstra’s development as an artist runs parallel to the development in his social position. That very link between life and work is what makes him a fascinating exponent of half a century of cultural life in the city of Groningen and elsewhere. (source)